Posted by admin on May 27, 2019
Here’s a couple of snaps from SIVE’s magical EP Launch last week in Anseo! Was delighted to be playing support. Photos by RF Amod. Buy/Listen to SIVE’s brand new EP here! Website: http://www.sivemusic.com/music Spotify: http://tiny.cc/lww86y YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/sivemusic Photos also include: Mark Dudley (guitar), Patrick Hopkins (drums) & Graham Heaney (bass) RF Amod,...
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Posted by admin on Mar 11, 2019
I have officially released the Rocky Road to Dublin to the radio stations :-) Feel free to request it, and if you are a radio station, feel free to contact me if you haven’t received a copy yet. Stream/download/buy: Rocky Road to Dublin “..breathing brave new life into this classic ballad” Ruth Smith | RTE Radio One Simply Folk | RTE Culture Record Label: Happy Out Records Release Date: 10th March 2019 _______________________________________________________________________ ‘Rocky Road to Dublin’ is a traditional Irish folksong. The lyrics are attributed to 19th-century Galway poet, D.K. Gavan. Ailie Blunnie: Vocals, Piano, Electric Guitar, Bass Guitar Arranged by Ailie Blunnie and Daragh Dukes Produced and recorded by Daragh Dukes Mastered by Richard Dowling, Wav Mastering, Limerick Video was filmed on May 24th 2018 on the way to Leitrim to vote to repeal the 8th amendment of the Constitution of Ireland: Rocky Road to...
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Posted by admin on Mar 10, 2019
We spent International Women’s Day @ The Glens Centre, Manorhamilton, Co. Leitrim – 8th March 2019 ACT 1: Victoria Geelan, Joleen McLaughlin, Rowan Armstrong ACT 2: Ailie Blunnie, Roisin Blunnie Photos by Fergal...
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Posted by admin on Dec 30, 2018
Hey! Here’s the full version of the Rocky Road to Dublin that I shared in the last post. The video was filmed on the way home to Leitrim the night before the Referendum in May (to repeal the 8th amendment of the Constitution of Ireland). Happy New Year! ..and thank you for all your support and help in 2018 ☆ Ailie x Song Credits: ‘Rocky Road to Dublin’ is a traditional Irish folksong. The lyrics are attributed to 19th-century Galway poet, D.K. Gavan. Ailie Blunnie: Vocals, Piano, Electric Guitar, Bass Guitar Piece also features metronome Arranged by Ailie Blunnie and Daragh Dukes Produced and recorded by Daragh Dukes Mastered by Richard Dowling, Wav Mastering,...
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Posted by admin on Aug 6, 2018
Here’s a quick link to a new arrangement of the ‘Rocky Road to Dublin’ that myself and Daragh Dukes made, which was used in this RTE Sport Super 8s taster video recently: Old Ballad, New Verse – It's @DubGAAOfficial v @officialdonegal – live on @RTE2 from 6.30pm #rtegaa #Super8s pic.twitter.com/EoR2rOTZW8 — RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) July 14,...
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Posted by admin on Mar 23, 2018
[This piece was originally published in Hot Press Magazine on Wed 7th February] I’m going to jump right in and suggest that most musicians who self-release music these days experience the process as a mixed blessing: there’s a lot of freedom, as well as a lot of limitations. I’m at a stage where I release a good standard of music, but not at the stage where I’ve used a PR service, or have a manager or booking agent, or anything like that. I’m somewhere in between. My day-to-day schedule is a mixture of music, English-teaching, and college (psychology/psychotherapy). The best part of self-releasing, for me—aside from the freedom element—is the hands-on industry experience you get. This includes everything from copyrighting songs, to negotiating door-splits, to buying barcodes. I like the idea of creativity being the joining-together of old ideas in new and relevant ways. I think it’s important to try and dip your toes into all of these various pools of knowledge to create space for those sparks to ignite. That being said, the practical and financial considerations of releasing music independently are a worry. Then you have the emotional stuff of managing expectations, and trying generally not to go mad in the process! For me, success is defined by the intrinsic reward of writing songs that I’m happy with artistically, and painting them onto a canvas of imaginative sound worlds (in collaboration with producer, Daragh Dukes, in the case of my latest release). Quiet, focused work, crafting and chiselling away at the emotional and sonic landscapes I’m trying to create: in a sense, luxuriating in the solitary world of musical introversion. After the release, you’re into the great unknown of the post-release limbo, and this has been the biggest challenge, in my experience. The quiet, focused work takes a back seat, and the expectation is to push yourself publicly, visibly, frequently, across multiple platforms, to optimise exposure. The self-releasers have to find the energy and confidence to push through with renewed vigour, especially if they have opted to go without additional PR support. Tough going. The trouble for me, in this regard, has been staying focused while navigating the various forces influencing perceptions of my work. Unlike the earlier stages, it’s hard to find a yardstick for post-release success. Airplay? Reviews? Interviews? Gigs? Venues? Audience numbers? Streams? Followers? Money? What’s more, it’s probably not particularly fruitful: a...
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